The sale of 187.5 million common shares at C$16 per share was fully allocated on Wednesday evening, soon after the deal was announced, the people said. The people declined to be named because the matter was not public.

The equity sale is expected to close next week.

Royal Bank of Canada (RY.TO) and JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N), which are leading the share sale, did not immediately respond to requests for comment outside office hours on Friday. A Cenovus spokesman declined to comment.

Cenovus shares tumbled to their biggest one-day percentage drop in history on Thursday as investors wondered if the company had made the right move in reaching the cash and stock deal to buy ConocoPhillips’ oil sands and natural gas assets. The stock was unchanged on Friday.

Reporting by John Tilak in Toronto and Nia Williams in Calgary; Editing by Jonathan Oatis